Thursday, September 22, 2011
Blog running while I am in Thailand
Arrived in Japan. Interesting flight. Sitting waiting for a transfer. Blinds cool, they follow the sun Dow, so it is just below the sun
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
The "Mighty Wurlitzer"
Michaela's mom and sister was in town yesterday. We enjoyed time with them, and in the evening we went to the Organ Stop, which has a very impressive Wurlitzer organ. Oh yeah this was impressive. There are only a few theaters that still have one of these, but this was a pizza parlor that you got to eat while he did a recital. It was really neat-o watching the Wurlitzer raise out of the floor and twist around and sound coming from everywhere. A great treat for all who come to visit us (it is in Mesa, so you could visit Bret also).
Update me please
Wow, where did the time go. Crazy evenings has kept me away for a while.
Updates:
Traffic Ticket: So, they dismissed it. Supposedly they thought the SUV was my car, and I could take a picture of any car to say it wasn't mine. Also, they don't trust the DMV, or the title for that matter. I don't know what they trust besides my drivers licence, which they looked at the picture to determine it wasn't me driving. They didn't even trust me standing there, because I could be a plant. Anyway, I was happy to get off.
Scooter: We bought one. It is a happy little fun ride. We already have over 1000 miles on it. It is fun, but it is also slow. It is a 150cc "Il Bello" Fly Scooter.
New Blog: Michaela Started one. scriptoriumblogorium. It also has Michaela's book in webpage format linked there. She had around 50 visitors reading her book, and lots of people linking to it. Check it out. It took me a long time to get it online.
That's about it. Oh, like everyone else I spent way too much time watching the Olympics.
Updates:
Traffic Ticket: So, they dismissed it. Supposedly they thought the SUV was my car, and I could take a picture of any car to say it wasn't mine. Also, they don't trust the DMV, or the title for that matter. I don't know what they trust besides my drivers licence, which they looked at the picture to determine it wasn't me driving. They didn't even trust me standing there, because I could be a plant. Anyway, I was happy to get off.
Scooter: We bought one. It is a happy little fun ride. We already have over 1000 miles on it. It is fun, but it is also slow. It is a 150cc "Il Bello" Fly Scooter.
New Blog: Michaela Started one. scriptoriumblogorium. It also has Michaela's book in webpage format linked there. She had around 50 visitors reading her book, and lots of people linking to it. Check it out. It took me a long time to get it online.
That's about it. Oh, like everyone else I spent way too much time watching the Olympics.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Transformer Car
A couple weeks ago we got a ticket from a traffic camera. Does this really look like our car? We own a green Toyota Camary. The licence plate on our car is 579 RLA. So the only thing close is the plates, but the tire obsures the last digit.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Facebook-- I never liked it. Why?? Well having a site that could only be accessed by register users is annoying. Lets face it, Facebook is a form of peer pressure. Any Facebook user realizes a registration is needed for friends to read their updates. If somehow a friend becomes registered, they are locked in and can't change social networks or they loose everything. Finally, a log in every day and staying logged in is important to stay up to date. I am sure ads on Facebook are in impression heaven with this last detail.
So, why am I ranting about this? Well... I joined Facebook. I guess the peer pressure got to me when Michaela started updating Facebook daily. Thoughts like "I'm her husband and I am not in the know*" and wisps of "Where did she find this out" started occurring frequently enough to loose any resistance. I still don't know why she won't write a entry for my blog, but I now know she updates Facebook regularly.
* I think Michaela and I have a good relationship. Of course I am "in the know", but thoughts are crazy like that.
So, why am I ranting about this? Well... I joined Facebook
* I think Michaela and I have a good relationship. Of course I am "in the know", but thoughts are crazy like that.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
The Geo affair
Many of you are aware of my blog in October called car poll. Well, there still isn't a new car in my driveway. I am still driving my Geo Prism, and this little car has led to the question; "Why my family loves a good Geo Prism?".
Before we take this question further, maybe a little history is in store. Around 1996, Dondavid Powell, the auto shop teacher at Ricks College, told my dad about getting good deals on wrecked cars to fix up. This idea sounded good to my Dad as a way for his kids to earn money. Well, buying these cars was easy, and we were pretty good at fixing them, but didn't do too well on selling them. Not really a bunch of salesmen. So, me and my brothers would drive them with for sale signs in them trying to get someone to bite.
As we were buying these cars, it became evident that there was a hierarchy to how easy a car was to sell. On the top of the list was Honda and Toyota vehicles. GM and Chrysler which we got were not. The problem was that even broken Honda and Toyota cars were more expensive then we we wanted. Then Dondavid told my Dad a Geo Prism wouldn't cost as much, and they were pretty easy to sell. So, we bought a Geo and the rest is history. In total we have fixed up six Prisms. Two were sold and we kept four for me and my brothers.
It is now 8 years after the last Prism was fixed, and only Kensey has sold his. We now come back to the question of why my family loves them? It might be that we know that we can embarrass kids (or Michaela) when they ride with us. Or, maybe the mechanical refresher courses we get. Maybe the answer is to show how strong we are to not succumb to buying a newer car.
This last week, my car was able to demonstrate all of these traits as I took co-workers to lunch. Normally they try to stay away from my Geo, as they try to show off there own cars. But this time the Geo didn't fail to impress. As we drove down the road, one mentioned it sounded like an airplane, and he liked it because he felt he was going fast. I laughed and all of a sudden a cup holder popped out (the latch broke) and I was able to show my ingenuity by jamming a piece of paper to keep it closed. In the end, they couldn't get out because the door handle was broken, and I had to show them "The Door Handle Knack". Sheesh, you wonder if they really are engineers. And when they got out, they looked so happy to have driven in the car. Maybe they will drive with me again.
Before we take this question further, maybe a little history is in store. Around 1996, Dondavid Powell, the auto shop teacher at Ricks College, told my dad about getting good deals on wrecked cars to fix up. This idea sounded good to my Dad as a way for his kids to earn money. Well, buying these cars was easy, and we were pretty good at fixing them, but didn't do too well on selling them. Not really a bunch of salesmen. So, me and my brothers would drive them with for sale signs in them trying to get someone to bite.
As we were buying these cars, it became evident that there was a hierarchy to how easy a car was to sell. On the top of the list was Honda and Toyota vehicles. GM and Chrysler which we got were not. The problem was that even broken Honda and Toyota cars were more expensive then we we wanted. Then Dondavid told my Dad a Geo Prism wouldn't cost as much, and they were pretty easy to sell. So, we bought a Geo and the rest is history. In total we have fixed up six Prisms. Two were sold and we kept four for me and my brothers.
It is now 8 years after the last Prism was fixed, and only Kensey has sold his. We now come back to the question of why my family loves them? It might be that we know that we can embarrass kids (or Michaela) when they ride with us. Or, maybe the mechanical refresher courses we get. Maybe the answer is to show how strong we are to not succumb to buying a newer car.
This last week, my car was able to demonstrate all of these traits as I took co-workers to lunch. Normally they try to stay away from my Geo, as they try to show off there own cars. But this time the Geo didn't fail to impress. As we drove down the road, one mentioned it sounded like an airplane, and he liked it because he felt he was going fast. I laughed and all of a sudden a cup holder popped out (the latch broke) and I was able to show my ingenuity by jamming a piece of paper to keep it closed. In the end, they couldn't get out because the door handle was broken, and I had to show them "The Door Handle Knack". Sheesh, you wonder if they really are engineers. And when they got out, they looked so happy to have driven in the car. Maybe they will drive with me again.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Why now is not a good time to own a house
To ever say "it is not a good time to own a house" is very questionable statement. The statement in this case is just a very generalized hook to get you thinking, and it probably is not true for many homeowners. A matter of fact, only a few home owners would say this is true, but don't chalk our landlord as one of them. If you haven't read the previous post (look down) then you wouldn't know our landlord was having problems. He is having problems with loosing money on his rental unit. Now when he tries to get an increase in rent, the tenant has lots of power, especially one who has a good credit score and the ability to buy a cheap house in a depressed market. Or we can go to one of the many vacant houses for rent on the market.
On a quick related note, I was talking with a source (who asked to be unidentified) who is starting to see an interesting phenomenon around the East Valley. Many people with good credit but owing more than there house is worth are buying in this depressed market and then filing bankruptcy. The expensive house falls into foreclosure while they keep the newer house with the cheaper payments and there is nothing the banks or credit card companies can do. Smart??? I guess.... Dis-honest??? definitely!! You do have to live in the house for seven years, and if you are late on any payments you have no recourse as the bank with attack you for all you are worth. But it is happening.
On a quick related note, I was talking with a source (who asked to be unidentified) who is starting to see an interesting phenomenon around the East Valley. Many people with good credit but owing more than there house is worth are buying in this depressed market and then filing bankruptcy. The expensive house falls into foreclosure while they keep the newer house with the cheaper payments and there is nothing the banks or credit card companies can do. Smart??? I guess.... Dis-honest??? definitely!! You do have to live in the house for seven years, and if you are late on any payments you have no recourse as the bank with attack you for all you are worth. But it is happening.
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